Hard disk drives (HDDs) are sensitive to vibration, with the performance and reliability of an HDD being adversely affected by excessive vibration of the disks. Vibration in hard disk drives (HDDs) can cause read/write errors and/or significant problems with the control and stability of the drive's servo-mechanical system. Disk vibration can be exacerbated by large-scale pressure variations in the airflow that is caused by disk rotation.
HDDs are also sensitive to particulate contaminates. Accordingly, the airflow caused by disk rotation must be filtered to remove potentially harmful particulate matter. To that end, recirculation filters are an important component of the HDD since particulate matter on disk's surface can significantly interfere with the operation of the HDD's read/write head. Typically, such recirculation filters are placed at a low pressure region off the disk where the airflow tends to migrate.
One method used to dampen disk vibration disks has been to place a stationary plate between disks. In addition to serving as a spoiler to destroy large-scale flow features that might lead to large-scale pressure variations, the stationary plate, in conjunction with the air (or other gas) surrounding the disks, also produces a squeezed-film effect whereby the compressed air between the individuals disks would exert a stabilizing force on the adjacent disks. However, such vibration dampers have not significantly enhanced the air filtering process. Given the HDD market trend towards reductions in both the cost and the physical size of HDDs, reducing the total part count within the HDD (for example by somehow providing additional functionality to an existing part) can significantly enhance the competitiveness of an HDD manufacturer's product. Thus, there is a need in the art for a disk vibration dampener that also improves the efficiency of the HDD recirculation filter.